PASSIONATE BREEDERS
ARE ALWAYS LEARNING.

Life Stages and Nutrition for the Sporting Dog

Archive document IAMS COMPANY

Iams is since 1999 a registered trademark of The Procter & Gamble Company. This is an archive document used historically by the Iams Pet Food company or for Iams Pet Food products. Any and all mentions included herein needs to be replaced in context of the time and geography of its initial use as circumstances and products may have changed since then. Products and relative data are for US only. No assertion or further use of these documents can be made without P&G's authorization.

GUIDELINES FOR A LIFETIME OF HEALTH CARE AND NUTRITION FOR THE SPORTING DOG

The Iams Company, Lewisburg, Ohio, USA
Presented 2002

Today's sporting dogs are truly canine athletes and are products of improved breeding, more sound training methods, and better health care. Just as human Olympic athletes have unique nutritional needs, these performance dogs also require special nutritional management that will provide the best chance for them to exhibit their skills at maximum levels. As breeding and training methods continue to advance, nutrition may prove to be the winning edge

NEONATAL LIFESTAGE: Birth to Weaning Health Care and General Management

• Begin internal parasite control as early as 14 days of age; a wide variety of drugs are safe and effective for roundworms and hookworms
• Have kennel veterinarian remove dew claws and/or dock tail per breed standard by age 3 days
• Administer first vaccinations at age 6 weeks, according to the kennel veterinarian's recommendations

Nutrition

• Begin weaning process as early as 21 days of age, depending on breed and puppy condition - Eukanuba® Puppy Weaning Diet Formula or Iams® Original Puppy Food are ideal choices

PUPPY LIFESTAGE: Weaning to 24 months

Health Care and General Management

• Maintain vaccination and deworming program per kennel veterinarian's protocol
• Begin and continue heartworm preventive medication as directed by kennel veterinarian
• Permanent identification via tattoo or microchip should be done by age 6 months

Nutrition

• For breeds that will mature to a body weight exceeding 50 pounds, the following diets contain optimal levels of calcium and calories to meet the special nutritional needs of large breed dogs
  • - Eukanuba® Puppy Large Breed Formula
  • - Iams® Large Breed Puppy Food
• For medium and small breeds
  • - Eukanuba® Puppy Small Breed Formula
  • - Eukanuba® Puppy Medium Breed Formula
  • - Eukanuba® Puppy Lamb and Rice Formula
  • - Iams® Original Puppy Food
  • - Iams® Lamb Meal and Rice Formula Puppy Food

ADULT LIFESTAGE: 2 to 7 years old Health Care and General Management

• Maintain appropriate vaccination and deworming schedules as advised by the kennel veterinarian
• Maintain heartworm preventive medication

ADULT LIFESTAGE:

• Have the kennel veterinarian design a regular schedule of preventive care for ears, pads, skin, and eyes; ask the veterinarian to design the program so the majority of care can be handled primarily by the trainer or owner with periodic input from the veterinarian
• External parasite control should be maintained per protocol established by veterinarian
• An annual visit by the kennel veterinarian should include a hands-on examination for early injuries or diseases
• Dogs in competition should have an annual blood tests for organ function, blood counts, and other screenings as advised by the kennel veterinarian
• Dogs should be specifically examined for dental problems and the kennel veterinarian should determine the course of action for each dog
• Breeding animals should be tested annually for Canine Brucellosis
• DNA testing should be conducted on animals whose registry requires documentation for breeding

Nutrition

• Dogs in competition
  • - Feed Eukanuba® Adult Premium Performance Formula
  • - Eukanuba® Large Breed Premium Performance Formula (depending on body size)
  • - contains glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to support joint health
  • - contains l-carnitine for fat metabolism
  • - Begin feeding 8 weeks before competition or intense training
• Dogs under extreme performance requirements
  • - Feed Eukanuba Veterinary Diets® Nutritional Stress/Weight Gain Formula™ Maximum-Calorie™/Canine
  • - Helps maintain weight during periods of stress
  • - Available only from the kennel veterinarian
• Dogs not in training (feed according to breed size and activity level)
  • - Eukanuba® Adult Maintenance Formula (also available in a Small Bite)
  • - Eukanuba® Adult Lamb & Rice Formula
  • - Eukanuba® Adult Large Breed Formula (depending on body size)
  • - contains glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to support joint health
  • - Iams Chunks® or Iams MiniChunks®
  • - Iams® Lamb Meal & Rice Formula
  • - Iams® Large Breed
  • - contains glucosamine to support joint health
• Pregnant bitches
  • - Feed Eukanuba® Adult Premium Performance Formula beginning the day of the mating
• All adult Eukanuba® dog foods contain the Dental Defense System™ to help support good dental health

SENIOR LIFESTAGE: Over 7 years old Health Care and General Management

• Older sporting dogs should have a thorough annual examination by the kennel veterinarian including a panel of blood tests as recommended
• Be aware if water consumption and urination volumes increase; this could be a sign of kidney disease and the dog should be examined by the kennel veterinarian

Nutrition

• Feed according to activity level, weight, and breed size
  • - Eukanuba® Senior Maintenance Formula
  • - Eukanuba® Senior Large Breed Formula
  • - Iams Active Maturity™